Christmas With Mr Darcy
by LilLamb24
Summary: After leaving Hertfordshire with the Bingleys following the Netherfield ball, Darcy decides that he must return to Elizabeth. It will be an exciting & surprising Christmas with Mr. Darcy.
1. Chapter 1

_**I'll Be Home For Christmas**_

Darcy stares out the window, watching people walking in the park across the narrow road. He sees a nurse feverishly keeping up with a laughing little girl with brown curls. The child stops suddenly to study a squirrel that stands at the base of a tree. Her curiosity brings a smile to his face. Then his attention is captured by a couple slowly walking arm in arm down the path. They don't seem to be talking but give every appearance of enjoying the company of one another. _I would enjoy a silent walk if I could have her hand upon my arm…_

"Mr. Darcy?"

A shrill voice interrupts his thought. Darcy turns to the others occupying the room and mentally chides himself for once again allowing thoughts of **her** to distract him from his own guests.

"Yes, Miss Bingley?"

The woman attempts to wipe any irritation from her face since she has finally achieved to capture his attention.

"Sir, I was just inquiring if you would be joining us for supper at the Hursts tomorrow evening? I know that Charles and I depend upon you being there."

She stated the last with a worried look towards her silent brother. Darcy frowned in concern as he glanced at his normally jovial friend. Charles spirits have been dampened ever since Darcy and Caroline Bingley convinced him to stay in London rather than returning to Hertfordshire as intended. It was difficult to see Charles brought low; however, Darcy would rather he overcome a brief heartbreak now then to suffer a loveless marriage for the rest of his life. _A marriage like I shall have if I am forced to marry Anne. _

Once again, Darcy stops that train of thought to respond to Caroline's question.

"Yes, I will attend tomorrow evening."

Charles roused himself to mutter a 'good, good' before rising from his seat and gesturing to his sister.

"I believe we must be off then. We shall see you tomorrow, Darce." Bingley said with a smile before walking into the hall. Caroline lingered for a moment and whispered when Darcy drew near.

"I thank you for joining us tomorrow. I believe that Charles needs a bit of attention to help him forget his disappointment. You are good friend, sir."

Darcy did not respond but walked his guests to the door to see them off. Once they left, he returned to the parlor window. His eyes scanned the park but there was no sign of the couple he watched earlier. For some reason, he found himself frowning at that.

It had only been two weeks since he left Hertfordshire with no intention of ever returning. Two weeks and one day since he saw her last…held her hand as they danced…watched her eyes come to life as she argued with him. While Darcy convinced Charles that they needed to leave due to Jane Bennet's indifference towards Charles, Darcy could not claim indifference towards Jane's sister. _Elizabeth_. Her situation in life was completely unsuitable yet he could not stop imagining her at his side.

He arrived in London to find that his sister was already on her way to Matlock House to spend the holiday with their relatives. His cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam sanctioned the change in plans which was his right as co-guardian of Georgiana. According to his cousin, Georgiana's spirits seemed to be improving under the loving care of their Aunt Matlock so he could not begrudge her desire to spend the holidays with them. However, this did raise certain possibilities for his own plans. Of course, he could join his family at Matlock House. He could also remain at his townhouse and partake of the many festivities taking place over the next several weeks. Yet…another possibility came to mind and while it should be madness to consider it, Darcy found that once the idea took root he could do nothing but think on it.

The next evening, while dining at the Hursts, Darcy found the perfect opportunity to bring his plan to fruition. Some of the guests were discussing their engagements for the holidays and a gentleman mentioned his need to return to his estate to distribute the boxes to their tenants. It seems that his matronly mother demanded that he carry on the tradition in person rather than allowing his steward to attend to it. When the ladies left the men to their port, Darcy approached Charles.

"I wonder Charles if we may have overlooked one of your duties at Netherfield." He said casually while filling his cup.

"What might that be, Darcy?" Charles asked.

"Did you make provisions for the holiday boxes to be delivered to your tenants?"

"Why, no, I did not. I did not realize that there would be such an expectation since I only recently took occupancy." Charles replied with a furrowed brow.

"Well, it's true that many would forgive the oversight; however, I believe that such goodwill on the part of a new Master would leave a favorable impression with your tenants."

"I see…Darce, I don't think that I could bear to return at this time." Charles admitted quietly.

Darcy nodded sympathetically.

"I would be happy to make arrangements for the boxes to be delivered on your behalf. I plan to leave London and will be passing through Hertfordshire, so it is no inconvenience to assist you in this matter."

"You're leaving town? I had thought you intended to stay?"

"With Georgiana gone, I find that I would rather be in the country for the holidays." Darcy's voice wavered a bit as he said this. Lying was abhorrent to him; however, he felt no need to share his true plans with anyone else at this time.

"If you are offering, then I shall accept your help with thanks." Charles replied.

Satisfied now that his course was set, Darcy spent the remainder of the evening in a kind of fog. He could not deny that he was nervous; however, there was a portion of his heart that was elated. To Hertfordshire he would go…


	2. Chapter 2

_**Oh Come All Ye Faithful**_

Elizabeth Bennet does not feel joyful nor triumphant. Not so long ago, her hopes were high that this holiday season might bring many glad tidings for the Bennet family. Only two short weeks ago, her family was preparing for the Netherfield ball with anticipation of a grand evening. Her beloved sister, Jane, was enamored with their new neighbor Mr. Bingley. Her mother was in high spirits. Elizabeth herself had been greatly looking forward to dancing with the handsome Mr. Wickham.

Alas, life does not always go to plan.

Her family's behavior at the ball mortified Elizabeth. Mary's over-ambitious exhibition at the pianoforte followed by her father's unintended slight towards Mary resulted in her younger sister's tears. Kitty and Lydia had entirely too much punch and ran about in a wild manner completely unbefitting of young gentlewomen. Elizabeth's long-awaited dance with Mr. Wickham did not take place since that gentleman decided he could not abide spending the evening with his childhood friend turned nemesis, Mr. Darcy. Missing this dance was bad enough in Elizabeth's estimation; however, she was further aggravated by Mr. Darcy himself asking her to dance. What could that man have meant by such a thing? She was well aware that he found her appearance merely tolerable…by his own admission. She was unable to fathom why he forced his company upon her for a half hour to complete the set. What followed was no surprise since they were hardly amicable towards one another. Their argument began the moment that Elizabeth attempted to better her understanding of that proud gentleman. Even as she battled verbally with him on the dance floor, she could not deny that he cut a striking figure. _Infuriating handsome man!_

And yet fate had not finished its demolition of the Bennets hopes. The following morning found Elizabeth as the unenviable recipient of her cousin, Mr. Collins, proposal. Thankfully her father had supported her decision to decline an offer from such a man. However, her mother had yet to cease her wailings of Elizabeth's selfish treachery after two weeks. Once the proposal business was put to rest, Elizabeth sought out Jane for commiseration. She found Jane near tears herself after she received a letter from Ms. Bingley confirming that the Netherfield party had left with no plans to return.

Now there was one more blow to the family. They had just received a letter from her uncle Gardiner stating that he and his family would be unable to join the Bennets at Longbourn for Christmas as planned. It seems that two of the children were suffering from head colds and now her aunt Gardiner was showing symptoms. Travel was not suggested so they would remain in London for yuletide.

Elizabeth had been counting on her Aunt Gardiner's advice on how she might improve Jane's spirits. Jane was quite despondent over the loss of Mr. Bingley. The only solace that Elizabeth took from her mother's constant remonstrations of her denial of Mr. Collins was that it diverted the attention away from her sister's perceived failure to make Mr. Bingley come to the point. It was ludicrous to Elizabeth that her mother should insinuate that Jane had some power over dictating Mr. Bingley's actions. As she glanced around at her mother and sisters in the parlor, she saw the thin-lipped anger still lingering upon her mother's face as she worked on a sampler.

"Well my girls, it seems that we shall have only ourselves to entertain this year. How could my sister Gardiner think to be sick at this time? Very rude in my opinion." Mrs. Bennet muttered as she wrestled her needle and thread through the hoop.

Yes, Elizabeth resigned herself to enduring a somewhat grim holiday season.

At that moment, a carriage was heard outside and all the Bennet ladies looked up from their various occupations.

"I wonder who that could be? Perhaps my brother has come after all!" Mrs. Bennet stated with a smile.

Kitty had run to the window to spy on the carriage.

"No, Mama, it is not my uncle's carriage. It is very grand though." Kitty said in awe.

Hill entered the room and announced the visitor. The Bennet ladies had just a brief moment to recover from their surprise when none other than Mr. Darcy walked into the room. There was a brief moment of horrible silence and Elizabeth could see that her mother was ill-prepared to greet this visitor. He was not a favorite with Mrs. Bennet since he had shown no inclination towards her daughters nor was he given to small talk or gossip; therefore, Mrs. Bennet saw no use for him. The tall man stood just inside of the parlor door, and when no greeting was offered, he seemed to grow nervous. Elizabeth saw that while his hands were behind his back, he was fidgeting with his pinky ring as he stood. The action seemed to so normal and un-Darcy like that Elizabeth took pity on him. She could bare the silence no longer and usurped her mother's place by being the first to greet their visitor.

"Hello again, Mr. Darcy. You have surprised us with your visit as we understood all of your party being removed to Town." Elizabeth spoke placidly, if not kindly.

As soon as she spoke, Darcy turned his full attention to her, and such a genuine smile lit his face that Elizabeth was sure she heard every female in the room swoon.

"Miss Elizabeth, it is wonderful to see you again and in good health." He responded in a quiet voice.

Elizabeth was astonished at this greeting and was sure that she would have stood gaping for some minutes more if not that her mother finally recovered her senses and greeted their visitor at last.

"Yes, you are very welcome, Mr. Darcy. Please do come in and take a seat, sir." She said as she indicated a seat near herself. The gentleman nodded and did as he was bid.

"Thank you, Mrs. Bennet."

Wasting no time, Mrs. Bennet asked if the entire Netherfield party had returned.

"Ah, no, they have not. I had some business that brought me this way, so I offered to assist Mr. Bingley in some particulars with his steward." He answered nervously.

"I see, that is unfortunate. I must say that it was unexpected to find the family removed so soon after the ball."

"I believe that Miss Bingley desired to spend the holiday in Town and my friend acquiesced."

Elizabeth decided to intervene before her mother could continue her inquisition.

"I hope that you found your sister well, sir?"

Again, he smiled as he turned his attention to Elizabeth.

"Unfortunately, when I arrived in London, I was notified that Georgiana had already departed with our Aunt to celebrate the holiday at Matlock House. However, I understand that she is doing very well. Thank you for asking, Miss Elizabeth."

Elizabeth heard Jane's quick intake of breath and hoped that this confirmation of Miss Bingley's machinations would help to soothe Jane's heart. Here was proof that Mr. Bingley would not be spending time with Miss Darcy while in Town as Miss Bingley indicated in her note.

Mr. Darcy then inquired as to their own plans for the season and Mrs. Bennet launched into her disappointment over her relatives from Town being unable to visit. Great were her lamentations yet Mr. Darcy politely listened and nodded when appropriate. Jane and Elizabeth caught each other's eye during this interlude, and both were hard-pressed to contain their smiles.

When Mr. Darcy rose to take his leave, Mrs. Bennet asked if his business would keep him here for some time. He responded that he was unsure of how long he would remain. Elizabeth raised her eyebrows at such an elusive response. However, Mrs. Bennet saw an opportunity before her. Although she never cared for this proud man, she would not allow the likes of Lady Lucas to entertain him instead of herself.

"If that is the case, then would you like to return to dine with us tonight? I know that Mr. Bennet would appreciate your company and I cannot think of you dining alone while in the neighborhood." Mrs. Bennet said graciously.

Elizabeth was surprised at this bit of hospitality from her mother since she knew well of her dislike; however, she was quite astonished when the normally reticent man immediately replied that he would be happy to join them.

Taking his leave of the room, his gaze lingered once again on Elizabeth as he said, "Until this evening then."

Mrs. Bennet now had something new to focus upon.

"What a surprise to be entertaining Mr. Darcy! Although I never thought much of the man, I must say that it was quite well done for him to call upon us when he arrived. And now we shall have the opportunity to discover when Mr. Bingley will return. There now, Jane. It shall all turn out as I knew it would."

With this pronouncement, Mrs. Bennet left the room to make arrangements for the meal that evening. Elizabeth and Jane spent the remainder of the afternoon trying to puzzle out what Mr. Darcy could mean by such an unexpected visit. Why had he come?


End file.
